If you’ve been to Jillian’s on a Thursday night over the last few weeks, you may have seen Ashlyn Bassett and Patrick Rogers practicing their moves.
The pair attended the National Shag Championships in Myrtle Beach over the weekend. Bassett and Rogers won the collegiate division of the competition, defeating couples from Clemson University, Western Carolina University and Elon University, among others.
“I was so proud to be Gamecock because there were a lot of Gamecock fans there cheering us on,” said Bassett, a third-year nursing student.
Bassett and Rogers first learned to shag dance last spring, when they took a beginning shag class taught by Michael and LeAnn Norris, and this was their first competition.
Rogers has always enjoyed dancing, and he was particularly interested in shagging after taking a ballroom dance class his first year at USC and Cotillion during high school.
Signing up for the class was a spur of the moment decision for Bassett, who just needed another class and was curious about learning how to shag dance.
“I just wanted to make an ‘A,’” Bassett said. “I didn’t think it would really turn into a hobby. I never thought that at all.”
Both Rogers and Bassett fell in love with shag dancing soon after starting the course. Bassett said she was “bitten by the bug,” and the pair have been dancing together ever since.
Michael Norris mentioned the competition to Rogers at the end of the spring semester, and Rogers got in touch with the people who run the National Shag Championship so that he could get involved.
Rogers was originally planning to compete in fall 2013, but his plan fell through due to lack of practice. But at the start of this semester, he decided to call Bassett and ask her to be his partner.
“I needed someone who I knew had the experience and could pick it up as soon as possible,” said Rogers, a third-year mechanical engineering student. “She was the person who came to mind.”
Bassett was excited at the chance to represent the university in the competition, which is the longest continuously running shag dance contest in the United States.
“I was kind of scared and nervous, but I wanted to do it because I love to shag so much,” Bassett said.
To prepare for the competition, Bassett and Rogers went to Jillian’s on Thursday nights and other shagging clubs throughout the state. Jeremy Webb, a Grand National Champion for the junior level of shagging and a first-year student at USC, also helped them practice beforehand and over the weekend.
Rogers not only loves the shag steps, but also the culture surrounding the dance.
“I love the culture,” Rogers said. “Enjoying the beach, having fun, staying up late dancing.”
Bassett’s favorite part of shag dancing is the history behind it.
“I love to feel like I’m continuing the tradition by being a part of the next generation of dancers,” Bassett said.